City, county and school district elected officials annually deal with multi-million, sometime billion dollar budgets. But many have little, if any, knowledge about local government financial matters when first elected. Written in an easy to understand style, this book provides beginning and seasoned elected officials and public administrators with the fiscal awareness to confidently make good budget and financial decisions. Local government is more complex today and there are more opportunities for poor judgement, conflicts of interest, embezzlement and fraud. The best antidote is an informed constituency that insists on good government and accountability. Community members, homeowners groups, business people, unions, service organizations, public watchdogs and newspaper reporters who want to assess their local elected officials" performance will find this book invaluable. Each chapter begins with a real life story such as the city manager who used the city"s credit card to go on an lavish shopping spree, the city that used debt to mask it"s huge deficit or the school superintendent who sacrificed the district"s solvency to create an award winning curriculum. Vignettes from over 77 different local governments across the country are used to buttress the suggested tips and techniques.